A new wireless ISP calledStarry aims to end that losing streak with a $50/month service that offers downloads and uploads at 200 megabits per second without data caps.

But while it seems to be off to a sound start here, the company will need to deal with obstacles ranging from simple foliage, to marketing to historic-review approvals before more people can connect via its airwaves.

Starry has eased its job further byfocusing on multiple-dwelling buildings: It puts a receiver on the roof, then the owner connects that to existing network wiring to give residents a new amenity. Kanojia said the firm now has 240,000 residences eligible for service.

One early subscriber praised Starry in an email conversation.

One of the 80-pound transmitters Starry places on cell towers.

“The service has worked great for us!,” said Terry Xu, a software developer in Cambridge. He sent screenshots of speed tests showing downloads and uploads consistently exceeding 200 Mbps, sometimes 300 Mbps. Ping times were at worst 16 milliseconds, easily responsive enough for everyday use.

Aside from “a few hours a month max” of planned maintenance, always with advance notice, Xu said he hasn’t noticed any downtime.

Regulations and other risks

Beyond expanding outside Boston — expect news about other markets early next year — Starry also plans to reach single-family homes. During my visit, Kanojia showed off the antenna it’s designed to fit in the bottom of a window; the antenna sits outside in a horizontal tube, with the rest of the electronics in a pod on the inside.

“Minimizing exposure to foliage matters,” Kanojia said. The signal can get through one or two trees, but not a stand of them.

Two telecom analysts called out risks to Starry’s continued buildout.

“I think it’s great in terms of the product idea,” said Alex Besen, CEO of theBesen Group and author of a study of Starry based on publicly-available information. But he worried that beyond-line-of-sight reception won’t meet the company’s plans.

Starry’s existing installations have already seen delays: Xu had to wait three months for his building to get online. Spokeswoman Virginia Lam said issues like historic reviews can prolong building deployments, but most take about eight weeks.

Kanojia said streamlining those municipal regulations would ease Starry’s work. What about the set of net-neutrality rules thatthe FCC aims to delete Thursday?

Roger Entner, lead atRecon Analytics, defined Starry’s ideal rival as phone-based DSL. “That’s your only option?” he said. “You’re going to do this in a heartbeat.”

Entner also warned that exclusive marketing deals between telcos and building owners could hold back Starry. In aJuly filing with the FCC, the firm asked the commission to prohibit those marketing lock-ins.

But those incumbents won’t stay pat forever. Comcast is moving toupgrade its upload speeds, while Verizon’s Boston Fios buildout should finish by 2021.

“A third player there is going to struggle to carve itself a niche from zero brand recognition,” said Felten.

Kanojia said its infrastructure-light business model will allow it to break even with very few sign-ups among eligible customers — “probably 3 and a half, 4 percent.”

Eventually,5G wireless will let Big Telecom compete not just over wires but over the air for your broadband business. But how many people who are tired of the cable-phone duopoly will want to wait until2019 or later for 5G to reach their home?

That’s the opportunity for Starry — and other companies that can get fixed wireless in gear sooner.